The Great Albee Layer 720 Debate

I knew that calling Albee Layer's "Air Of The Year" a 720 would cause surf nerds everywhere to take to their computers and start punching the keyboards furiously with passionate calls for correction. Two of my good friends who also happen to be professional snowboard and surf commentators; Sal Masekela and Todd Richards, were the first to nerd out and digitally yell at me for this gross insult to the entire action sports community. Todd Richards, who commentates the Winter Olympics simply texted "Shame on you."

Below is a direct transcript of a dorky text-message-war (hence the abbreviated speech and whatnot) between Sal and myself in regards to the controversial naming of Albee Layer's aerial featured in the 2012 TransWorld SURF Awards. This is a real hot-button issue! Yeah right… —Chris Coté

Sal: I don’t think Albee Layers double oop is a720. An oop is essentially a backside 180. Comes around to fakie would be 360. A oop ‘full rotation’ as they say would be a 540 and another 180 which would have him landing fakie would then an only then be a 720.

Chris Cote: I agree with that assessment. However, if a snowboarder or skater attempts a 720 and lands “almost” all the way and reverts the last part out, you’d still say 720. But yeah, it’s a 540

Sal: Probably. But it’s embarrassing to surfing that we are the only ones that can’t count. And it’s an insult to skateboarding and snowboarding.

Sal: Ha! Ill write a letter. I just think if surfing is gonna be on the progress train it should be held to the same strict guidelines as its sideways brethren. No free passes on tricks, no matter how cool they are.

Chris: I’ve watched the trick 1000 times and when he lands on top of the wave he’s still rotating to where he’s going forward again. Surf tricks can never be called exactly as skate and snow because snow and cement does not move. How does one factor in the intertia and movement of the wave when calculating rotations and angles of take off?

Sal: Bullshit. He lands where he lands. If he touches down 180 later is it all of a sudden a 900? Yes there’s water and its not a constant surface but a landing is a landing. One doesn’t factor in angles and inertia. It’s simple math.

And what you are describing is a revert. It’s not a bad thing. Doesn’t lessen the trick. But you have to leave proper room for growth instead of giving it the crown. People are going land actual true 720’s and alley oop sevens with no revert. What will those be called?

Chris: I think spins are dumb anyway, but For arguments sake, I’d say if someone did what Albee did, but landed on the face proper with no revert it would be a 720. Albee landed somewhere in the middle. Someone could do it off backwash and make the full two rotations and land straight for 720. That would be funny.